EPASpeaking at a memorial service for victims of the Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, Israel’s prime minister said he was “determined” to secure the return of the dead hostages who still remain in Gaza and that the country would continue to fight terrorism with “all its might.”
Benjamin Netanyahu made the comments hours after Hamas returned the bodies of two more hostages, but said the bodies of the remaining 19 were not accessible.
There was anger in Israel over Hamas’ failure to return all the bodies under last week’s Gaza cease-fire agreement, although the United States downplayed suggestions that it constituted a violation.
Also on Thursday, Donald Trump signaled that he is willing to see a resumption of fighting if Hamas “continues to kill people.”
“We will have no choice but to go in and kill,” the US president said in a post on his Truth Social platform, apparently referring to reports of violence inside Gaza in recent days, where Hamas has been accused of violently targeting internal rivals.
Trump previously ruled out sending U.S. troops to Gaza.
Earlier, the Israeli government confirmed on Wednesday night that the two bodies handed over by Hamas to the International Committee of the Red Cross were identified as Invar Hayman and Sergeant Muhammad al-Attarashi.
Their return from Gaza City under the supervision of masked Hamas gunmen brings the death toll since Monday to nine out of 28.
All 20 living hostages were released on behalf of 250 Palestinian prisoners and 1,718 detainees in the Gaza Strip held in Israeli prisons.
Hamas’s military said on Wednesday it would continue searching for the remaining bodies, but that it would require enormous effort and specialized equipment.
Israel responded to the delays by threatening to limit the amount of aid flowing into the Gaza Strip.
On Thursday, Netanyahu spoke at an official memorial service at Jerusalem’s Mount Herzl National Cemetery, two days after the Hebrew calendar anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack.
The prime minister said he was doing everything he could to secure the return of both dead Israelis and foreign hostages, and reiterated his government’s willingness to return to military action if Israel were attacked again.
“The war on terror will continue with all our might, and we will not allow evil to rear its head,” he said.
Israeli forces began an operation in Gaza on October 7 in response to an attack by Hamas-led gunmen that killed about 1,200 people and took 251 hostage in southern Israel.
At least 67,967 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip since then, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, a figure the United Nations considers reliable.
ReutersThe Israel Hostages and Missing Persons Forum said Netanyahu’s government should “immediately suspend” implementation of the ceasefire agreement until the 19 bodies were repatriated.
Two senior advisers to U.S. President Donald Trump said preparations were continuing to move to the next phase of the ceasefire agreement, after Hamas said it could not recover all the bodies.
Advisors told reporters that the U.S. government so far did not believe Hamas had violated the agreement by failing to recover more remains and that the group had acted in good faith by sharing information with its interlocutors.
The full text of the agreement between Israel and Hamas has not been made public, but a version leaked to Israeli media appears to allow for the possibility that not all the bodies will be immediately accessible.
A senior U.S. adviser pointed to the level of destruction in Gaza as a reason the search could be slowed and said rewards could be offered to civilians for information about the location of the remains.
Hamas has complained to mediators that more than 20 people have been killed by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip since the ceasefire took effect last Friday.
The Israeli military, which still controls more than half of the territory, said it opened fire to eliminate a threat to its forces.
Meanwhile, in the Gaza Strip, work is underway to identify the bodies of Palestinians repatriated by Israel in recent days to be exchanged for the bodies of hostages. On Thursday, 30 more were returned, bringing the total to 120.
There were some reports that the Rafah crossing with Egypt, which has been closed since the Gaza Strip was taken over by Israeli forces in May 2024, would reopen on Thursday.
The ceasefire agreement states that the reopening “will be subject to the same mechanisms implemented” during the temporary ceasefire earlier this year, when wounded Palestinians were briefly allowed to pass through to receive medical treatment.
“The date of opening the Rafah crossing for the movement of people will be announced later after the Israeli and Egyptian sides have completed the necessary preparations together,” an Israeli military Kogat official said on Thursday.
The official also emphasized that “relief goods will not pass through the Rafah intersection.” Instead, they said they would continue to enter Gaza through the Kerem Shalom crossing in southern Israel and other crossings after Israeli security checks.
